Hand tacking-tool.



No. 695,554. Patented Mar. I8. |902.

' lA. HEBERT.

HAND TALKING TO0L. (Applieion med my 1 6, 1901.) y (no Model.) 2 shaatssheet c.

No. 695,554. Patented Mar. la, 1902.

. A. HEBERT.

HAND TACKING TOUL.

- Application mea may 1e, 1901.) (No Model.)

mg NoRms Pneus co., Puouumu.. wAsHxNaroN. u4 c UNTTEE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARSENE HEBERT, OE MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGNOR TO HERBERT B. NEWTON, OE HAVERHILL, MASSACHUSETTS.

HAND TAoKlNe-Tool..

.SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 695,554, dated March 18, 1902.

Application tiled May 16, 1901.

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARSENE HEBERT, a subject 'of the King of Great Britain, residing at Manchester, in the county of Hillsboro and State of New Hampshire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hand 'Packing-Tools, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates t-o certain improvements in hand tacking-tools or pincers which are especially designed to be employed in lasting shoes. l

Prior to this invention I have produced various forms of hand tackinggtools, three of which are described in my prior patents, Nos. 620,650, 670,491, and 670,403. These tools are open to several serious objections which'it is the object of this invention to overcome.

One of the chief objections to the' prior devices referred to is the great liabilityof the tack being thrown or jerked back by theact of striking down with the hammer, so that it will be thrown out of position to be engaged by the drivingplunger after vit has been dropped into the feed-passage of the hammer. If this occurs, not only will the hammer miss driving a tack when it should, but a' second tack will be dropped into the tube,

causing the hammer to become clogged in many cases. Another objection resides in the fact that in these prior devicesl the tack must drop nearly the entire length of the hammer before it reaches a stopping-place, so that if a second blow is struck very quickly sufficient time will not have elapsed to permit the tack to reach a position in which it will be engaged by the plunger when the next blow is struck. i 4,

In the prior devices referred to the mechanism for feeding the tacks one by one into the hammer from the raceway is also-more or less defective, vand with all prior devices, so far as I am aware, it has been impossible to drive two tacks close together without driving one of them into the head. It has also been found"v extremely difficultI with these prior devices for the workman to drive the tack suflciently straight and with sufficient force to cause it to enter a hard leather or leather-board sole, principally because the serai No. 60,464. (No model.)

ham merslides on the outside of the feed-tube, and therefore a short guiding-surface is provided for it, so that if the workman should strike on the edge of the hammer in a direction other than directly in line with its sliding movement or other than fiat upon its face the hammer will bind on the tube, so that it will not be forced back sufficiently to drive in the tack and will swing out of line, so that the tack will not be driven straight and will often be bent.

The objects of my invention are to produce a tool of the above-named character in which all possibility of the tack being thrownnpor out of position in the act of striking will be avoided, in which the tack will be seized while in the tack-raceway and positively conducted tothe point where it will be engaged by the tack-driver, which will hold the tack so that it may be driven straight into either hard or soft leather, in which two tacks maybe partially driven close together, and in which the work may be st-ruck by the hammer in almost any direction without causing the reciprocating part to bind to any appreciable extent, and thereby interfere with the driving of .the tacks.

I accomplish the above-named objects of myy j invention by employing a tool in which the outer or hammer part and the driving-pin or driver are both fixed to the handle or main part of the pincers, and the tube through which the tacks pass is slidably connected to the hammer inside thereof, so that a long bear.

ing-surface is provided therefor, thus avoiding all liability of binding in whatever direction the blow is struck. I further provide the feed-tube with a notched latch which is moved so that the tack may pass below the notch when it leaves the feeder and will be rmly clamped against the side of thefeedtube by the latch the instant the notch in the latter passes beyond the end of the driver, so that all possibility of the tackl being jerked back out of place is avoided. I further arrange a portion of the driver and feed-tube outside of the face -of the hammer, so that a tack may be driven close to another tack IOO of my invention will be better' understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Fgure 1 is a central cross-section taken on the line X X of Fig. 4, the parts being shown with the sliding part in its outermost position. Fig. 2 is a similar view of the principal parts of the device with the sliding part in its innermost position. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line Y Y of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a partial plan view of the device with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 1, the cover to the feedchannel being removed. Fig. 5 is a similar View to Fig. 4 with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 6 isa detail view of the under side of the raceway-cover. Fig. 7 is a view of the face of the hammer. Figs. 3 and 9 are detail views of the upper latch and driver, respectively. Fig. 10 is a side elevation of the tool complete. Figs. 11 and 12 are enlarged cross-sections of the feeder and its closely-associated parts, the positions being the same as in Figs. 1 and 2,1espectively. Fig. 13 is a similar view on the line z z of Fig. 11.

In the drawings the same numerals indicate the same parts throughout.

The main body or stationary member 1 of the pincers is provided with a handle 2 and jaw 3, which are formed integrally therewith, and a hammer 4, which is iirmly connected thereto by pins or screws. A second handle 5 and jaw 6 are pivoted to the main body 1 and connected by the link 7 in the usual way. The tack-magazine 8 is secured to the front part of the main body 1, and said magazine is provided with oppositely-arranged diverging plates 9, which are secured to or formed integrally with the vertical plates 11, which are arranged closely adjacent each other and constitute the tack-raceway. These plates 11 extend rearwardly, and their upper edges are inclined downwardly to a vertical shoulder 110, beyond which the edges are horizontal. The ends of said plates 11 are inclined at 111, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. The tack driver or plunger12 is secured to the main body] by means of a lateral projection 120 or any other convenient means, and said driver extends downwardly and terminates slightly below the face of the hammer 4. rl`he front side of the driver is provided with two notches 13 and 14 and a projecting lip 15 near its upper end. The face of the driver is made concave at its upper portion, as indicated in Fig. 9. The sliding block or feed-tube 1G is fitted in a passage which extends from top to bottom of the hammer 4 and body l, said block being provided with two laterally-projecting lugs 17 and 18 on each side thereof and two guiding-fianges 19 and 20, said lugs being fitted in corresponding grooves in the hammer 4 andsaid guiding-flangesbeing fitted in guideways or l grooves in both the main body 1 and hammer 4. Springs 170 and 130 are arranged between the under side of body 1 and the upper sides of said lugs and act constantly to press said block outwardly.

The block 16 is preferably made rectangular in form and projects laterally beyond the rear side of the hammer 4. The driver 12 is preferably made square or rectangular in cross-section and is arranged in a rectangular passage 10, which extends from top to bottom of the block 16, with its front side approximately in line with the rear side of the peripheryof the hammer, as shown in Fig. 7. A series of latches 21, 22, and 23 are pivoted in the passage 10, said latches being constantly pressed toward the face of the driver by springs 24, 25, and 26, respectively, said springs being located in chambers in block 16, the ends of which opposite the latches are closed by screw-plugs. The upper and lower latches 21 and 23 are preferably provided with notches 27 and 28, and said latch 21 is also provided with a projecting flange 210, as indicated in Figs. 1, 2, and 8, said flange being arranged on the righthand side thereof and in the same plane as the iiange 15 on the driver. The pivot-pins of said latches preferably pass through elongated apertures in each instance, so that each latch is susceptible of both swinging and lateral movements. The latch 2l is preferably provided with two pivots instead of one, and its upper end is reduced in thickness, so that it may pass between the plates 11 for reasons hereinafter explained. The tack-feeder 29 is pivoted at 30 on the upper side of the main body 1, said feeder being made in the form of a flat plate and being provided with a rearwardly-projectinglug 3l and two arms 32 and 33, which extend forwardly and are then bent toward each other and inclose a space which is directly above two upwardly-extending fingers 34 and 35, which are formed on the upper end of the sliding block 16 on each side of passage lO and driver 12, said nger 34 having an inclined side 340. (See Fig. 3.) The arm 32 of the feeder is provided with two prongs 36 and 37, the prong 36 being slightly recessed on the side next the prong 37, so that a diagonally-extending notch 360 is formedl between them. The opposite arm 33 is provided with a V-shaped prong 38 at its end, the point of which is opposite the notch 360 and slightly in front of the inner end thereof, all as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The arms 32 and 33 of the feeder are arranged to swing as closely as possible to the shoulder 110 on the plates 11. A spring 39 (see Fig. 1 and dotted lines Figs. 4 and 5) bears against said lug 3l and acts to constantly throw the feeder 29 to the position shown in Fig. 4. A raeeway-cover 40 is arranged over the raceway formed between the plates 1l and extends into the tack-magazine a short distance from the tack-collector plates 9. The opposite end of said cover 40 is provided with a lug 42, by which the cover' may be removably secured to the main body 1 by a pin 43 or any other suitable means. The upper side of the cover is provided with a groove 41, which extends from the inner end thereof to the .face of the driver 12, the depth (See Figs, 3 and 8.)v

IOO

IIC

and width of said groove being sufficient to permit the free passage of the head of a tack of any size which will be likely to be used. The inner or frontend of the groove 41 is provided with a projectinglip 44, said lip being slightly in front of a notch 45, which is formed in the edge of each plate 11. Two projecting plates 46 are secured in a recessin the under side of the cover 40 directly over the ends of the arms 32 and 33 of the feeder-plate, the ends of said plates 46 being soarranged with respect to each other that they will permit the passage of the body of the `tacks therebetween, but will not permit the passage of the heads thereof. (See Figs. 6 and 13.) The front sides of said plates 46 are varranged in notch 47 in the edge of the raceway-plates 1,1 just above the shoulder 110 and at the end of the inclined portions thereof, (see Fig. 11,) so that when a tack slides down the raceway the head thereof will pass onto the plates 46 and its body will be` suspended by and between them. The groove 41 is open 4beyond the plates to its end, so that the tacks may drop directly into passage 1 0 as soon as they pass said plates. V A y The rear edge of the block 16 is provided with two notches 48 and 49, and a'springpressed lever 50 is pivoted to the bodyl, sol

that the tooth 51, formed thereon, may engage said notches 4S and 49 4'when' the "block is pushed inwardly and hold it either in an inrtermediate position or sothat its face will be flush with the face of the hammer.`

Having described the general construction of ymydevice, the operation thereof` may be described as follows: The tack-magazine is filled with tacks in. the usual way, and as it isvshaken vup and down the tacks will be collected by the plates 9 and conducted down the raceway to theV end of the incline, thereof, where they are stoppedby the prong. 37 on the feeder-plate `29. The notch 45 and 'proj ection or lip 44 prevent the tacks from being d thrown out of the raceway when the workman strikesdown with the tool. When the work is struck by the block 16, the latter will be forced into the hammer and the'inclined side 340 0n the upwardlyxtending fingerv 34 at the top of said block will engageV the innerside of the arm 32 of the feeder. When the block 16 has been forced nearly into itsllimit, it willv cause the feeder to swingto the right, and when the block 16 is forced in fully to the position shown in' Fig. 2 the prong 37 willI have passed to one'side of the raceway', as,

shown in Fig. 5, permitting the tack to pass the end of said prong. The lateral move-ment of the feederv29 carries theV prong 38 across Athe racewa'y, so 'that'itwill engage vthe tack which hasv passed the end of prong37, thus permitting only'one tack to pass the prongl37..

When the block 16 is again forced outwardly by the springs170 and 180, 4the spring 39 will swing the feeder 29 back to the position shown in Fig. 4 as soon as the block is lowered sufficiently to move the iin ger 34 out4 of engagement witharmw32. As the incline which is formed on the projection 34 is veryV abrupt, the distance which the block will need to move before the feeder will be swung back is very slight. The tack which has passed the point of prong 37 will be carried into the end of the notch 360 beyond the end of prong 38 as the feeder swings back to the position shown in Fig. 4. Whenfthe block 16 is againforced inwardly, swinging the feeder 29 as before, the tack, which has its body portion locatedin the notch 360 and which is also supported by its head on the y projecting plates 46, (see Figs. 11 to 13,) will now be engaged by the rear face of the prong 38 and. carried rearwardly, so that it drops into the passage 10 between theends of the raceway and the face of the driver 12. In the meantime another tack has passed the'prong 37 and into the notch 360 beyond it.A As the block 16 is forced upwardly the lips 15 on the driverand 210 on the upper latch 21'come into engagement, so that the pointed upper end of said latch will be swung away fromv the driver, ysaid pointed upper endpassing between the tackr which isin the notchf360 at the end of arm 32 andthe tack which is resting against the prong 37 in the raceway, as shown in Fig. 2. This action causes the notch 271on the latch 21 to be moved so that` when the tack is dropped into the passage wbe tween it 'and the driver itwill readily pass below said nnotch 27 andY lodge between the latch andthe driver, as shownin Fig. 2. The

pointed upper end of the latch 21 separates the two tacksuwhich were in engagement with the feeder and prevents any lateral tipping thereof which might possibly interfere with the proper feeding ofthe tack into the tackpassage 10 ofthe block 16.

venting ythe tack from being drawn up be-` yond the latch 211by the driver'as the latch is carried down withthe block 16. The length ofV up 15 is suincientto hold' 'latch 2r awayL from the driver until theblock is nearlyl forced outto its limit,giving the tackv ample time toV drop into place..

reaches its outermost position. n d blockl is again forced inwardly, thenotch 13 engages the head of the tack and forcespitm.

. Y y y AS the tackn is, dropped into the tack-passage 1()V between thek I lThfen Ithe latch is, permitted to grasp the tack just as the block- Whe'n they IOO IIO

down below the end of the 1atch21,a ssh'own in Fig.2. The lower endfof the latch21isfpref7 erablymade square,r and the latcht 22 which is directlyb'elow it, is provided with a grooved r face, so that the bottom of the latch 21 willact v as la'notch; but obviously the result would be the same if the'latch 22 were provided witha and22 made correspondingly longer. WhenV the block-16 is `forced outwardly again, the

. [3o notchand the Alatch 21 madeslightly shorter of latch 21, so that the utack which is below said latch 2l will' 4be engaged by said notch 14 when the block is again forced inwardly and the tack will be carried below the notch 28 on the lower latch 23, as shown in Fig. 2. When theblock is again forced outwardly, the tack, which has been forced past the notch 28, will drop down tothe position shown in Fig. 1, so that it is held between the face of the latch 23 and theside of the passage through the block 1G, directly in the path of the end of the driver 12. It will be observed that the tack which is thus held will be confined in a comparatively small space, and that it will be impossible for it to be thrown back out of the path of the driver when the workman strikes down with the tool, and also that the face of latch 23 may be so shaped that the tack will be held straight in line with the driver. The result is that on the next inward movement of the block 16 the end of the driver will strike this tack and force it into the work. The feeder will havein the meantime acted to supply a single tack on each reeiprocation of the block 16, so'that a series of tacks will be carried to the several positions previously described, and a single tack will-be forced in position to be driven into the work whenever the block 16 is forced inwardlyby striking it against the work.

The functions of the lever 50 and notches 48 and 49 are the saine as those described in reference to the spring-pressed trigger shown in my prior patents above referred to and need not be here described.

As block 16 projects from the face of the hammer, as shown in Fig. 7, and as the driver is located outside of the general outline of the hammer, so that each tack will be driven at one side of the latter, it will be apparent that a tack may be driven in partially and then a second tack driven close to it without strikingthe first tack and driving it home. This is a veryimportant feature of my invention, as it isnecessary to have the lasting-tacks driven so that they may be readily removed, particularly in turns and Goodyear welts, and it is also necessary to drive the tacks close together in many places in order to last the shoe perfectly.

As the block 16 is guided throughout its entire length, affording a very long bearingsurface therefor even when it is in its outermost position, there is practically no liability of its binding in the hammer when the work is struck in a diagonal direction to the path of the block. Moreover, as the lower outer corner of the block is made rounding; as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, almost any blow which would otherwise be likely to cause it to bind in the hammer will not have that effect.

The feature of providing means for supporting the head of the tacks while they are being separated by the feeder and dropped one by one into the feed-tube passage is an important feature of my invention, for the reason that if the slotted support formed by plates 46 were omitted tacks having' comparatively small heads would drop into the space between the prongs of the feeder and clog it. The principal difficulty, however, which would arise if the tacks were not supported against lateral movement above the feeder is that the feeder would engage each tack directly under its head and tip it into a diagonal position across the raceway, thus causing it to bind and its head to tip, so that its edges would pass into the space between the prongs of the feeder. The result would then be that when the movement of the feeder was reversed the tack would become jammed between the feedervand raceway, clogging the feeder and preventing its feeding on the tack. Vhen the slotted support is provided, however, the tack will be held against lateral movement both above and below the feeder, so that it cannot possibly tip orbecome misplaced. (See Fig. 13.)

With the above-described device it will be observed that the tack will be seized practically as soon as it leaves the feeder, and it is then positively held until it is driven into the work, so that it is impossible for the tool to miss driving a tack soY long as the parts are in working order. The liability of any of these parts becoming disarranged is very remote.

Various modifications may be made withou t departing from the spirit of `my invention. For example, the two upper latches might be omitted and the lower latch be moved away from the driver when the feed tube or block is forced into the hammer, so that the tack would drop direct from the feeder to the lower latch and be automatically locked thereby when the block is forced out, or the threelatches might be made in one piece, which would be provided with notches at suitable intervals throughout its length.

Having described my invention, what l claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

1. A hand tacking-tool comprising a relatively fixed member and a spring-pressed member which is adapted to reciprocate with respect thereto, one of said members being provided with a tack-passage which extends therethrough, a driver which is secured to said fixed member and is located in said tackpassage, a notched latch which is located in said passage, a spring which acts normally to press said latch against said driver, means for feeding a tack into said passage and positively Inoving the notched portion of said latch away from said driver when said reciprocating member is forced inwardly so that a tack may pass into said passage between said driver and latch and below the notch in the latter, and means for causing said latch to positively engage the tack Wby the time the reciprocating member has moved to its outermost position and hold the same from backward movement.

2. A hand tacking-tool comprising a rela- ICO IIO

tively fixed member and a spring-pressed member which is adapted to reciprocate with respect thereto, one of said members being aprovided with a tack-passage which extends therethrough, a driver which is secured to said xed member and `is located in said passage, a latch which is located in said passage,

' is forced inwardlyso that a tack may pass into said passage between said driver and the upper end of said latch, and means for releasing said latch so that it may be pressed against the tack by.y the time the reciprocating member has reached the outer limit of its movements, thereby positively holding thetack against backward movement.

3. A hand tacking-tool comprising a relatively fixed member having a hammer secured thereto, a spring-pressed member which is adapted to reciprocate with respect thereto andis provided with a tack-passage which extends therethrough, a driver which is secured to said hammer and is Varranged in'saidpassage, a spring-pressed latch which is arranged in said passage, is pivoted to said reciprocating member, and is normally forced against said driver, and means carried by said fixed member for engaging said' latch and moving the upper end thereof away from said driver as the reciprocating member is forced inwardly, means for feeding a tack into said passage as the movable member reaches the limit of its inward movement, and means for releasing said latch. y

4. A hand tacking-'tool comprising a relatively, fixed member having a 4hammer secured thereto, a spring-pressed member which is adapted to reciprocate within said hammer and is provided with a tack-passage which extends therethrough, a driver which is secured to said hammer, al latch having a notch, said latch being pivoted to said reciprocating member, a spring for pressing the same against theface of said driver, means for moving the notched portion of said latch away from the driver and for feeding a tack into said passage as the reciprocating member is moved inwardly, wherebya tack may be lodged between the latchand driver below said notch, and a notch in the face of said driver which is vso arranged that the notch in said latch passes beyond it when said lreciprocating member moves outwardly to its limit.

5. A hand tacking-tool comprising a relatively ixed member and a spring pressed member'which is adapted to reciprocate with respect thereto, said latter member being provided with a tack passage which extends therethrough, a latch which is pivoted to said reciprocating member and is arranged in said passage, a tack-driver which is arranged in said passage and is securedto said fixedmember, aA spring for pressing said latch against the face of said driver, a projection lon said driver which is adapted to engage said latch and move it away fromA the driver as the reclprocating member is moved inwardly, and

meansfor feedingavtack into said passagev while the latch is held in this position.

. 6. vA hand tacking-tool colnprisinga relatively fixed member having a hammer se-` cured thereto, a spring-pressed member which' is adapted to reciprocate withinsaid hammer and has the lower end portion thereof project-ing laterally beyond the periphery of the hammer, said reciprocating member having a tack-passage extending therethrough,

the lower or discharge end of said passage`be ing located partially in said projecting portion, a driver which has its lower end arf ranged inthe outermost portion ofrsaid pas-- sage, andmeans for feeding the tacks vin' position to be engaged by the en d of saiddriver, whereby the tacks maybe driven beyond .the

periphery of the hammer. l

7. A hand racking-tool,comprising a hammer and a feed-tube, one of which is adapted to reciprocate relatively to the other, said feedtube being located partially without the hammer, and a driver which is located in the'passage of said feed-tube with its end arrangedv partially outside theA periphery of said hammer, and means for feeding the tacks in position to be engaged bythe end'of said driver, whereby two tacks may be driven' closely adjacent to each other without` either being struck by the hammer.

8. A hand tacking-tool tively' fixed hammer and a spring -press'ed block which is adapted to reciprccate within said hammer, a fiat-sided projectionbn said block which proj ectsbeyon'd the periphery of said. hammer and is provided with a tack-passage, a tack-driver which is located in said passage, and means for feeding thefta'cksiin position tobe engaged by. said driver 'as said block is forced inwardly, wherebytwo tacks 'may be Vdriven in close proximity without either being struck by the hammer.

9. A hand tacking-tool comprising av tack- Y magazine, a tack-raceway leading therefrom,

a feed-tube and a hammer, one of which isl adapted to reciprocate with respect Atothe other, a tack-feeder 4comprisinga `notched plate which when actuated is adapted to conlduct the tacksjone by one from the raceway to the feed-tube, means for actuating said plate which are controlled bythe'relative positions of s aid feed-tube and hammer, and a slotted support above said lplate which is arranged to receive the tacks from the raceway and support Ithem by their heads while said `plate is in engagement therewith. l'

10. A hand tacking-tool comprising a hammer and a feed-tube, one of whichris adapted,

to reciprocate with respect to the other, atacklmagazine and a raceway leading therefrom,

Va. tack-feeder which is arranged yabove and closely adjacent to saidl racewayat its end, said feeder comprising a notched plate-which comprising a relawhen actuated is adapted to separate and conduct the tacks one by one from the raceway to the feed-tube, means for actuating said feeder which are controlled by the relative positions of said hammer and feed-tube, a slotted `support which is arranged directly over said feeder and is adapted to receive the tacks as they pass down the raceway and support the same by their heads while the feeder is in engagement therewith, the slot in said support being enlarged beyond the feeder so that the tacks will be allowed to drop from said support as they are discharged from the feeder.

11. A hand tacking-tool comprisinga relatively fixed member having a hammer firmly secured thereto, a spring-pressed block which is arranged to slide within said hammer, a tack passage which extends through said block from end to end, a tack-driver which is secured to said fixed member and is arranged in said passage, a spring-pressed latch which is normally forced toward saiddriver, a tackraceway, a feeder which is adapted to receive the tacks from the raceway and discharge them into said passage, means for actuating said feeder and for causing the same to discharge a lack on each reciprocation of said .block, a projection on the upper end of said latch, means for movingsaid latch away from said driver so that said projection passes between the tack which is about to be fed into said passage and the next succeeding tack as the block reaches its inward position, said means permitting said latch to move toward the driver as the block moves outwardly and after the tack has been discharged by the feeder.

l2. A hand tackingtool comprising a relatively fixed member havinga hammer firmly secured thereto,a feed-tube which is arranged to slide within said hammer, a projecting lug on each side of said tube, said hammer being provided with corresponding grooves which terminate above the face of the hammer, and springs arranged between a relatively fixed portion of the tool and the upper sides of each of said lugs, whereby said springs act constantly to force said tube outwardly.

13. A hand tacking-tool comprising a relatively fixed member, comprising a hammer which is fixed thereon, a block which is adapted and arranged to slide within said hammer, a lateral projection onsaid block which extends beyond the periphery of the face of the hammer, a tack-passage in said projection which extends through the bottom thereof, a driver in said passage which is secured to the hammer, means for feeding a tack in posit-ion to be engaged by the driver as the block is forced inwardly, the face of said projection being substantially Hush with the face of the hammer when in its innermost position and being provided with a rounded corner at its outer edge.

14. An automatic tacking device comprising a tack-magazine, a tack-raceway leading therefrom, a relatively fixed member and a movable member, one of said members being provided with a tack-passage, a tack-feeder which when actuated is adapted to separate the tacks and conduct them one by one from the raceway to said passage, means for actuating said feeder, and a slotted support above said feeder which is arranged to receive the tacks from the raceway and support them by their heads while the feeder is in engagement therewith.

15. A hand tacking-tool comprisnga relatively iixed member and a spring-pressed member which is adapted to reciprocate with respect thereto, one of said members being provided with a tack-passage which extends therethrough, a driver which is secured to said fixed member and is located in said passage, a latch which is located in said passage, means for feeding a tack into said passage and for positively moving the upper end of said latch away from the driver when said reciprocating memberis forced inwardly, so that a tack may pass intosaid passage between said driver and the upper end of said latch, and means for releasing said latch and for pressing the same against the tack by the time the reciprocating member has reached the outer limit of its movements, thereby positively holding the tack against backward movement.

In testimonywhereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ARSENE HEBERT.

Vitnesses:

LoUIs I-I. HARRIMAN, G. E. UCKER. 

